Asper Dentatus Stelio
by Write Here2
Summary: With Helen wreaking havoc, and Nick still insisting that Claudia Brown existed, can the team hold together as they face a new crop of anomalies? Please excuse the title. And blame online dictionaries for the bad Latin.
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER – Not mine.

A/N – Not normally the sort of show I would write about, but I thought, eh, I have nothing better to do, so...

* * *

"Uh – Professor? Hello?"

Nick Cutter stared into space, lost in his own world. He had given up on marking essays hours ago. Part of him knew that he was spending far too much time thinking about Helen , about Claudia, and the anomalies. The past and the future; one changed, and the other destroyed. There would be no future with Claudia now.

"Is he dead, do you think? He doesn't _look_ dead."

An exasperated voice muttered in reply. "Shut up, Connor."

"I'm just saying...is he asleep with his eyes open?"

Reluctantly, before Stephen could give into the urge to throw the young man out, Nick dragged himself away from morbid thoughts. He swivelled his chair round to face his most eager student. With considerable effort, Nick collected himself, and gestured for Connor to speak. The young man looked even more excitable than usual, and was triumphantly holding a newspaper article.

"Hi Professor!" he said. "Did you see about the new dinosaur exhibition?"

"What can I do for you?" Nick said. He winced at the wavering smile on the young man's face. Apparently his tone hadn't been as measured as he'd thought.

"Um – it's about my dissertation, Professor." Connor said. He laughed nervously. "I've spent so much time chasing velociraptors that I'm really behind."

Nick let his mind wander, even as he listened and nodded at all the appropriate points. He tried not to notice Stephen hovering awkwardly in the background. A stab of anger took him by surprise. They had declared a truce – hadn't really been given a choice, under the circumstance – but the elephant was still in the room.

"So, what do you think?"

His professional side kicked in. "I think you need to come up with a plan. Having all these ideas is fine, but there's no structure." He eyed Connor suspiciously. "How long did you think about this before you came to see me?"

A bright red flush coloured the young man's face. "Um."

"Come back when you've got something to show me."

"So that's a definite no to the aliens?"

He didn't even bother to reply to that, and ignored the brief conversation Connor had with Stephen on his way out. Nick had the idea that they were worried about him. It had presented itself in small ways – whispered conversations, clandestine phone-calls, sideways glances. A tiny smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. It sounded like he was describing an affair. Stephen rose, catching Nick's peripheral vision, and the smile disappeared.

"Connor's eager." Stephen said.

"Connor's always eager."

"You sure you should have dismissed him like that?"

Nick suppressed the flash of anger that flared up. "He had nothing."

"He had ideas."

"Nothing secure, nothing planned. He probably thought about it for all of five minutes before coming to me."

Stephen started to say something. He paused, and shook his head, well aware that any conversation with Cutter at the moment was like a minefield. Not for the first time, the younger man wished he had never met Helen. He turned back to his desk. There was a growing pile of paperwork that he had neglected in favour of working on the "anomaly problem" as he had taken to calling it.

"What?"

Stephen bit his lip. He had hoped that Cutter would leave it alone. "You've been – short. With all your students."

"Stephen, you and I both know that most of them waste my time."

"Yeah. But not Connor."

Nick leant back in his chair and sighed. "You're right." He rubbed at his tired eyes. "I'll talk to him."

Stephen watched Cutter go. The older man looked tired. He had done ever since returning from the anomaly six weeks ago. Stephen hadn't been surprised to find out that Connor and Abby were both concerned too. The story about Claudia Brown was bizarre. What had surprised him was Connor's newfound belief that Cutter was telling the truth. He had never really considered the consequences of their ability to walk into the past before, but if it was all true…Stephen chewed his lip absentmindedly. He wondered how much else they had changed, simply by taking a walk around a world that was not really their own.

He couldn't decide which of the two possibilities was worse. Take A – the world has been altered, and could be altered again, by the anomalies – or B – Nick Cutter was suddenly losing his mind. Stephen sat down and grabbed a piece of paper from the pile. He shook his head, dismissing reacherous thoughts in favour of paperwork.


	2. Chapter 2

DISCLAIMER – Not mine.

A/N – I know it's still early days, and the story hasn't really gotten going get, but... please review! It makes me all enthused about writing more.

* * *

Connor walked across the university campus, trying to ignore his fellow students. Sometimes – but only sometimes – he wished he was like them; completely ignorant to the existence of the anomalies. They brought nothing but trouble. The young man stopped by a small tree, and reconsidered that thought. Trouble, and Rex. He reconsidered again, remembering the small flying lizard's escape attempts. He grinned at the memory of the last one. Rex, who was normally devoted to Abby, had decided to make a run – or rather, a fly – for it. In the end, Connor had been flattened by Abby, who had successfully leapt over him, shut the window, and tripped backwards.

He thought of his fellow "crime-fighters", and smiled sadly. The anomalies really had only brought trouble. Professor Cutter had lost his wife, found her again, and discovered what she was really like. Stephen had been bitten – and there was the small matter of him sleeping with the Professor's wife, of course. Still, Connor thought, he wouldn't have traded with anyone. _Not even __himself_. A half-remembered conversation with Abby, nearly a week before, floated to the top of his mind.

_ He caught sight of his flatmate out of the corner of his eye. Abby was waltzing around in underwear again. Sometimes, he swore she did it just to wind him up. He swallowed, and closed his eyes. Through sheer force of will, Connor turned his attention back to the new game he was playing. It was terrible, but it was a choice between the game and his dissertation. No contest._

_ Connor had almost succeeded in forgetting his flat-mate's current state of undress when she landed next to him on the carpet. She really had to be winding him up. There was no other explanation. With a quick sideways glance, Connor saw she was holding Rex. The lizard was a strange little thing. His loyalty was almost dog-like._

_"Connor."_

_He twisted his neck to see her. "Abby."_

_"What do you think about all this – __y'know__"_

_Connor waited. __"Um.__ No, Abby, I've got no idea what you're talking about."_

_"__Y'know__Cutter."_

_He shrugged. Women confused him. Abby definitely confused him._

_"What about Cutter?"_

_She leant forward to whisper, as though someone was listening in. The conspiracy theorist in Connor suggested it was a distinct possibility. "__Y'know__His mystery woman."_

_"Claudia Brown?"_

_"Yeah.__ Her."_

_"Oh. He seemed pretty sure she existed."_

_ Abby shifted again, planting herself on the carpet next to him. She looked worried, he thought. __Very worried.__ It made her eyebrows crease just – Connor shook himself. This wasn't the time. Feeling nervous, and a little ridiculous, Connor placed an arm round her shoulders. He was immensely relieved when she relaxed against his shoulder. It had been the right thing to do. __The "friend" thing to do._

_"He did, __didn't__ he." She said. "What if-"_

_"What if she was real?"_

_"What if he's lost it?"_

Connor was starting to understand why the Professor was so annoyed with everyone. If the team had started doubting him like that, he wouldn't have known what to do. Still, he had offered Abby all the comfort he could without getting a smack in the nose for his trouble, and hadn't brought the subject up since.

"Connor!"

The familiar Scottish accent surprised him. Connor turned around to see the Professor slowing to a walk. The older man looked slightly guilty.

"Hey – Professor. What's up?"

"Look – if you want to go over those ideas, I have office hours on Thursday."

"Um. Alright. Thanks." Connor looked around, and stepped forward. "Don't tell anyone, but I think you might have been right about the aliens."

Cutter grinned, despite himself. He was almost sure that Connor had no more given up on his alien theories than he had given up on Claudia Brown's existence. Still, he thought he might as well make the most of the olive branch. Just as he opened his mouth, a shrill tone sounded from his pocket. Cutter took out his mobile phone. He swore vehemently under his breath.

"What?"

"Wow. Didn't know you knew that many swear words." Connor said, impressed.

The Professor raised an eyebrow. "Cutter." He waited for a few moments. "OK. We'll be there soon as we can."

Snapping the phone shut, Cutter walked away across the grass. When he had nearly reach the paving, he turned and rolled his eyes. It dawned on Connor that he was supposed to be following. The young man jogged to catch up.

"So what've we got?"

Cutter shook his head. "Don't know. Reports of a big scary monster at a lake in Devon."

"Big – scary – monster?"

"That's what I said."

"Is that a technical term?" Connor asked. Before ducking away, just in case.


	3. Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER – Not mine.

A/N – I know it's still early days, and the story hasn't really gotten going get, but... please review! It makes me all enthused about writing more – and if you're getting no feedback, it makes it all kind of pointless.

Um – also, I quite like the first part of this, but not the second. So...sorry about that, but couldn't think of how else to write it.

* * *

Abby shivered in the cold breeze. She zipped up her thick black jacket. Looking down at it, she wondered why she had chosen the thinner of her two options that morning. Glaring sideways at Connor – for no particular reason other than that she knew he wouldn't be offended – Abby cursed her bad luck .Glaring beyond him at Stephen, she cursed men as well. _Just for good measure_, the zoo keeper told herself, finally looking away when she saw the carefully blank expression on her flatmate's face.

She knew Connor liked her; he hadn't exactly kept it secret. Or, if she was feeling the need to be accurate, he hadn't quite got the grasp of subtlety. Abby stopped herself looking at Stephen again. It was a sharp reminder that she was in no position to judge. Besides, apart from occasionally ogling – which always got him in trouble – Connor had been a perfect gentleman.

They were sitting in the SUV, waiting while Nick Cutter had a discussion with Lester. Abby was pretty sure that flailing limbs and storming off didn't come into a normal discussion. She wondered absently if the two men would ever find common ground. It was, she decided, highly unlikely. Cutter was already on his way back to the car, with a stormy expression on his face.

Abby hadn't been aware that you could open a door with venom, but apparently it was possible. Cutter sat in the driver's seat and gripped the steering wheel till his knuckles went white. She studied him, suddenly concerned, but looked away when he caught her eye. For a moment, it looked like he was going to yell at somebody – anybody – but just as quickly as that feeling arrived, it was gone. He smiled briefly at her. Abby couldn't help feeling it was an apology.

"We have two anomalies."

"Two?" Stephen repeated. "Where's the other one?"

"Same place. Opposite ends of the lake."

"Well-" the younger man said, surprised. "- do we know if they're from the same time period?"

"Do I look psychic?" Nick said. "No, we don't know."

"Um – Professor..."

Abby was pretty sure Connor had been about to say something like – _but don't psychics look like anybody else? _– until she elbowed him, hard, in the ribs.

"What, Connor?"

"Oh, nothing." The younger man offered Abby a sheepish smile, and slunk down into his seat.

* * *

The team waited anxiously by the SUV - _again_, Abby thought grumpily - while Nick negotiated with the Special Forces team. He still hadn't adjusted to the new group leader, who was more abrasive than the man he had replaced. Lester had probably selected him personally. The professor agreed to allow Forces divers in the water first. Once the level of danger was established, he and Stephen would follow. It wasn't quite what he had wanted, but it was better than he had expected.

"So? What's happening?" Stephen asked, before he had even walked all the way over.

"They're going in first." He said.

"And you agreed to that?"

"I didn't have a choice."

Abby must have noticed an argument brewing, because the next thing Nick knew, he was facing a barrage of questions about the creature sighting. Connor, he noticed, was still trying to get internet. In the middle of the Devonshire countryside. He had to give the young man credit for persistence.

"Look, all we know is, the farmer's son walked over here with his girlfriend.."

"Nice place for a picnic." Stephen said innocently.

"Long story short, they ended up running out of the lake, screaming about a giant monster crocodile. The farmer called animal rescue, and it got back to us."

"Giant crocodile?" Connor said, suddenly serious. "_Amphibious_ giant crocodile?" He glanced around, looking for it, and drew his feet up onto the bonnet.


	4. Chapter 4

DISCLAIMER – Not mine.

A/N – I have taken artistic license with the dinosaur/reptile/whatever information, because frankly it is not my field of expertise – although mostly, just because I can! Artistic license – it's a wonderful thing. So my apologies to any true dino enthusiasts. Sorry.

Also, obviously I've seen that there's a few people reading this. Please let me know what you think. Constructive criticism welcome.

Ah, finally - I can wrap this all up in one extralong chapter (kind of "feature-length", if you like), or it can be a bit longer. Up to you guys.

* * *

Abby checked her watch. Stephen and Cutter had been in the water for ten minutes. Connor was checking his computer's database for what he had called "creature feature" suspects – a phrase he had only used because the two "senior" members of the team were out of earshot. That left her with precisely nothing to do. Not for the first time, Abby wished she could be out there with them. 

She checked her watch again. Only a minute had gone by. Her pacing hadn't gone unnoticed. Connor had set his laptop aside. He slid off the SUV's bonnet and joined her. It was a move designed to wind her up, but Abby fell for it anyway. She shoved him playfully.

"Stop it!"

"Stop pacing. You're putting me off."

"Really?"

Connor went bright red. "You know what I mean."

He sat back down again. As a gesture of apology, Abby hopped up onto the bonnet next to him, and settled into looking at pictures of reptiles that even she did not want to run into. Some of them looked like she would have made a tasty snack. One, in particular caught her eye. She grabbed Connor's hand to stop him scrolling past it.

"What's that?"

"Vicious."

Their conversation died completely after that. Abby shivered again; this time it had nothing to do with the cold. In her moment of jealousy, she had forgotten just how dangerous this job could be.

* * *

Stephen swam slowly towards the anomaly. He remembered the Special Forces diver who had swum through an aquatic anomaly by accident. They had learnt so much since then – and lost so many people. On that subject, he looked at his fellow diver. Nick was closer to it than he was. Stephen wondered if his boss wanted to go through; maybe he thought he could find Claudia Brown on the other side. 

Just as he was mentally warming to his subject, a moving shadow caught his eye. Stephen moved cautiously until he was facing the centre of the lake. It was then that he saw it – a long, dark shadow that shifted like a predator getting ready to pounce. Stephen sweated in his suit. It was much closer to Cutter than he was, and very probably quicker in the water. Horror-struck, he realised there was no way of warning Nick without getting its attention.

He turned back towards the edge of the lake. The Forces divers were close, but they didn't seem to have noticed the danger. Stephen swore. The last time he had been this panicked, he had ended up with a bite from an overgrown venomous centipede. He winced at the memory.

Finally, the Forces diver noticed the dark shadow. It was getting ominously larger. Stephen hovered in the water. His horror grew when the creature got close enough for him to get a proper look. It had to be at least eight feet long, if not bigger, and had a long jaw full of what looked like very sharp teeth. Naturally, he thought with a tinge of irritation, it was then that Cutter realised it was there.

Stephen backed away slowly. He was reassured when a Forces diver swam in front of him, ready to fire. Another grabbed his shoulder and dragged him towards the water. It was a split-second before he remembered Nick, and struggled. The diver shook his head, and pointed to the surface. The young man scowled. He had to get out of the lake. By staying, he was endangering two more lives – his own, and that of the diver assigned to keep him safe.

He broke surface with a rush, grappling for the banks of the lake. Strong hands grabbed him and pulled him out. Stephen yanked off his mask .

"Cutter's in trouble."

Captain Lawrence nodded. "We have two divers in there, Hart."

"Get them out. That thing is huge."

Stephen felt like he was in a standoff. He returned Lawrence's scrutinizing gaze with steel. It was, he thought, some kind of test.

"Alright." Lawrence said, with newfound respect. "Alright. We'll do what we can. What does the creature look like?"

"Yeah, I might be able to figure out what it is."

Stephen jumped. He scowled at Connor and Abby.

"It looked like a giant crocodile, but its jaw was very narrow. Lots of teeth."

Connor rushed off toward his laptop. If it was all he could do to be useful, he would do it. For her part, Abby stayed. She held Stephen's arm, and stared out at the lake with him. There was no sign of movement – no sign of the divers. Abby glanced up at Stephen. He met her eyes and smiled weakly. This was the closest they had been since before Helen's calamitous announcement. Stephen sobered at the thought. Nick was still out there, with a vicious prehistoric crocodile for company.


	5. Chapter 5

DISCLAIMER – Not mine.

A/N – Thank you very much to my four lovely reviewers – your comments are appreciated. Hope the story lives up to your expectations! To everyone else – thanks for reading!

* * *

Connor's fingers danced over the keyboard. There wasn't much to go on, beyond the general appearance of the creature, and its size, but it would be enough for an educated guess. He muttered to himself while he worked - _Come on, you must be here somewhere, what are you? What are you?_ He risked another glance up at the lake; there was a small ripple as a diver broke surface. It wasn't Professor Cutter. Trying to ignore his growing panic, Connor turned back to the screen. He froze.

"Uh!" Connor squeaked, speechless at his own success. He slid off the hood, still holding the laptop, and waved frantically.

Stephen was deep in thought, standing next to Abby. Connor automatically dismissed the thoughts that came into his head with that picture. He stumbled over to the pair, who hadn't moved an inch.

"Stephen." He said weakly. "Stephen, mate!"

The other man turned round hopefully. "What? Did you find it?"

Connor held out the computer for Stephen to take. On screen, there was a picture of a prehistoric creature that looked very much like a crocodile.

"Rutidon. It's a phytosaur. Ate fish and land animals."

Stephen nodded. "Grows up to ten feet long."

"How long was the one you saw?"

A piercing shriek made them jump. Stephen was first to turn round, and see the middle-aged woman standing near the lake in her flowery coat. She had her hands pressed to her face; a kind of middle-England live version of _The Scream_. Stephen followed her line of sight. His brain stopped short. Lawrence was by the side of the lake, helping drag one of his men out. The diver's left arm was torn and bloody.

The team stood still, afraid to wait, but even more afraid not to hear what had happened. After making sure his diver was safe, Lawrence strode over. His dour expression had never been more appropriate.

"Our man lost sight of Cutter." Lawrence said shortly. He left unsaid what they were all thinking. _He went through the anomaly_.

As the soldier turned smartly on his heel, Abby caught his arm. "We have to look for him." She insisted.

Lawrence looked down at her. His gaze softened. "We can't. Not with that..." He craned his neck to look at the computer screen. "...Rutidon out there." He paused suspiciously. "Exactly how dangerous are these things, Temple?"

Connor swallowed. "Um. I'm not sure. They're big. Quite big, in fact."

"Give me an estimate."

"Ten feet." He offered a weak smile.

"The one in there is just under six feet, give or take. It can come out of the water, I'm guessing?" Lawrence waited for Connor's confirmation. "Right then. Be careful." He glanced at Abby's arm. She reluctantly let go.

"Now what do we do?"

The two younger members of the team turned their gazes towards Stephen.

"We were sort of hoping you might have an idea." Abby said.

He shook his head. "There's nothing we can do. Lawrence will never let us in the lake, and we shouldn't go. We would endanger the lives of the divers."

It was acknowledged that Stephen was second-in-command (even after Helen's disastrous declaration in the forest), but this was a little too much like they had already lost Cutter. Abby stormed off angrily, towards the SUV. She flung open the door, leapt into the front passenger seat, and slammed the door shut again. The two men watched her go, equal expressions of worry and regret on their faces.

"He..." Connor said. He trailed off at the sight of Stephen's face. "OK, you don't want to talk. Fair enough."

The young man backed off, leaving Stephen to stare at the water as though it had betrayed him. He was angry with himself for not keeping a better eye on Cutter; with Lawrence for being rightly cautious; with Cutter, for not coming back. Stephen kicked a stone. His temper cooled as quickly as it had flared. _So much for self-control._


	6. Chapter 6

DISCLAIMER – Not mine.

A/N – Fifth chapter. Shouldn't think there'll be any more than one or two left. Unless I come up with more ideas, of course!

* * *

Nick's concentration wavered. He realised with a start that he had been gazing at the anomaly for too long. It caught him every time - the strange crystalline shapes and colours, the lure of the world beyond. _And you wonder why they worry._ Reluctantly, the professor twisted round in the water. He stopped dead, frozen in place by icy fear. Right in front of him, snout to nose, was a creature. It bared long, sharp teeth, stained red. 

"Oh bloody hell." Nick swore under his breath.

His mind worked without prompting, assessing the creature. It wasn't a fully mature adult – for which he was endlessly grateful – but the thing had to be around six feet long. It's thick scaly skin and long, thin snout gave it the appearance of a prehistoric crocodile. Nick tried not to notice that it looked underfed, and hungry.

_Rutidon__Phytosaur__ of the Triassic Period_. Nick wished he could berate his own mind. _Now think of something useful!_ If the creature had recently attacked someone, perhaps it had fed. His stomach rolled at the possibility. There were only three other choices, presuming nobody else had entered the water. The two Forces divers – both good men – and Stephen. Suddenly, Nick's problems with the young man seemed insignificant. He might not trust him, but this – this possibility – was more important.

A sharp _whoop _sound flashed across the water from Nick's left. He stayed frozen in place as the creature thrashed wildly. It screeched, and swam frantically for the anomaly, where life was safer. Nick realised with dread that he was right in front of it.

* * *

"Cutter? Cutter, hello? Wake up, I need you to help me with my dissertation."

"Shut up, Connor!"

"Well, it's true..."

"It's not exactly appropriate though, is it?"

Nick's throbbing head won out over his patience. "Shut – up." He said weakly.

"He's awake!"

"Connor, sssh!"

Nick's eyes fluttered open. He could make out two blurry figures. They kept moving in and out of focus. He lifted his head to see them better – and his eyes rolled back, giving up the effort.

* * *

"I think he's coming round again."

This time the voices were much softer. Nick reluctantly opened his eyes, just a little. The bright sunshine made his thumping headache flare up. He swore quietly, under his breath. Connor and Abby were watching over him, first-aid kit at the ready.

"Professor?"

He squinted in the sun. "Ouch."

"How do you feel?" Abby asked. She and Connor had taken over the task of caring for both "patients", under the direction of the injured Forces diver.

"Like a Rutidon ran me over."

She grinned, relieved that he remembered what had happened. "Well if you will work with dinosaurs..."

Nick muttered something unintelligible, and tried to sit up. The two youngest members of the team helped support him – which was fortunate, as the ground started to tilt at strange angles. He closed his eyes again, feeling suddenly very nauseous. _Slow breaths, in and out, and stay as still as possible._ By the time he'd opened his eyes again, the world seemed to have moved. Nick frowned.

"We thought you'd be better off sitting up against the car. Bit of support." Abby explained.

"Oh."

"We think you have a concussion."

"Oh."

Abby glanced sideways at Connor. He shrugged, and shuffled over to the Forces diver – _the name's Greening_, he reminded himself – to ask advice. Meanwhile, Abby searched through the small first-aid kit to find something that might be of use. She sighed heavily. Nothing.

"What's – what's going on?"

She froze at the Professor's question. "What do you mean?" she said.

"With the – uh – thing. Phytosaur."

A cold feeling entered her veins. Abby reassured Cutter the dinosaur was gone, probably back in its own time, and shot over towards Greening. The diver looked brighter than he had only a few minutes ago. The wound to his arm had fortunately missed the major artery. It was bleeding badly, but if given medical treatment, was not too serious.

"Your friend here said-"

Abby cut him off. "He's confused. Just asked what's happening about the Rutidon."

"It swam back. Through him." Connor said.

"That was sort of my point."

Greening straightening up, and immediately went pale. "Don't – think – I'll try that again." He wheezed. "You need to get him to a hospital immediately."

Connor checked his watch. "Ambulance was called fifteen minutes ago, but this is really out of the way."

"Check his pupils. Are they uneven?"

Abby rushed back over to Cutter, who had passed out again. She scrabbled through the first-aid kit. Triumphantly, she held up the tiny torch. Greening offered her an encouraging smile. The young woman prised open her boss' eyelids. She checked his eyes with the torch, like they had shown her in first-aid training.

"Yes!" she yelled over.

Greening shook his head. "That ambulance needs to get here _now_."

She felt, rather than heard, Stephen run up the slope behind her. He stopped just short of the car. Abby sat back, holding Cutter's hand – not for his comfort, but her own. Stephen crouched down next to them. He put an arm round her shoulders, painfully aware of how long the ambulance was taking.

"He is going to be alright, Stephen?"

He nodded, and leaned forward to take a closer look at Cutter. Anything else was just not an option.


	7. Chapter 7

DISCLAIMER – Not mine.

A/N – Final chapter. Don't know if I will write again in this area, but glad to have finished! Thanks for reading/reviewing. Feel free to review if you have not done so already – it improves any possible future work.

* * *

He gritted his teeth and tried to make the inside of his head stop spinning. Somewhere, Nick knew he would have to open his eyes soon – and then the roundabout in his skull would intensify. A groan escaped before he could stop it, but just as quickly, a thick fog came back. He decided it was a much better option.

* * *

"I really thought he was going to wake up."

Abby half-smiled, and took Connor's hand. "We know."

"He made a noise, and everything."

"It's OK."

He stood up abruptly, and tore his hand from hers. Connor had spent most of his time at the hospital since they had burst in three days ago. Abby came by whenever she could, and when she wasn't there, Stephen often was. She sighed. It didn't seem to have made any difference. Connor sat down again. He offered her a hand, which she gripped tightly. It was his way of apologising, and Abby wasn't about to deny her friend comfort.

The creature hadn't returned through the offending anomaly, and both had closed without further incident. Abby remembered how calm and reassuring Lawrence had been in the end, and smiled. He was a good man. That brought her thoughts back to Greening, who had ended up with a patchwork arm, but no permanent damage. Both of them had been to visit.

Abby had half expected Helen to turn up, but a part of her felt she ought to have known better. She still wasn't sure what exactly her resentment of the woman stemmed from, but that hadn't stopped her indulging in a daydream involving Helen trapped in a cage with hungry lions. The zoo keeper shot Cutter a guilty look. She was glad no one could read her mind, sometimes.

"Abby..."

"Yeah?"

"He is going to wake up, isn't he?"

"Yeah. Course."

"You're sure?"

Abby turned to look at Connor. She took both his hands. "He's going to be fine. Just needs to wake up and get off his backside."

He grinned, and turned to speak to Cutter over his shoulder. "She said that, Professor, not me."

"Snitch."

A low groan from the bed stopped their gentle banter. They looked at each other, and rushed over to Cutter's side. Blue eyes bleary from days spent unconscious stared up at them. Connor rushed out of the room in search of a nurse.

"Hey, Professor." Abby said. He blinked slowly. She tried again. "Hey – Nick."

"Hey." He murmured, before closing his eyes and going back to sleep.

Seconds later, the nurse rushed in with Connor hot on his heels. The burly Northerner had kept the pair of them positive in the past three days. He checked Cutter over with careful efficiency, before turning to smile at them both.

"Did Sleeping Beauty say anything while he was awake?"

"Yeah. He just said hey."

Frank nodded. "Well. Chances are he's going to be fine. I'll speak to the doctor, and get him to come and speak to you."

As soon as Frank was gone, Abby turned to Connor and threw her arms round him. She hugged her friend tightly. Connor stood awkwardly. He patted her shoulders. This was all a bit strange to him.

"Breaking my ribs a bit, Abby."

She released him, and tucked a stray hair behind her ear – a sure sign she was embarrassed. "Sorry."

Connor put a tentative arm round her shoulders. "No problem." He said. "After all this, no problem at all."

* * *

Nick stared hopelessly at the congealed mass on the white plastic plate. It was green in places, yellow in others. He had the horrible feeling that if he didn't eat it, Frank would have words to say. A snort broke the silence. Nick looked up, and glared at Stephen, who was sitting in the chair reading a magazine, and trying not to laugh.

"You eat it, then." He said.

Stephen folded up the magazine, and swapped him for the plate. "Easy." He took a big forkful of the unidentifiable mess, and started to chew.

Nick waited. The corners of his mouth curled up. Stephen's face remained completely stoic as he finally swallowed. They sat there in silence as he polished off the whole thing. Finally, Stephen handed the plate back.

"How bad was it?"

Stephen shrugged. "Fine."

"You're lying, aren't you?"

"Yeah." He said. "It was – actually, what was it?"

"No idea."

They sat back in companionable silence, glad that, somehow, they were on an even keel. Stephen took back his magazine and flicked though till he got to an interesting article.

"You know this makes us even, right?"

Nick raised an eyebrow. "Eating that?"

"Did you smell it?"

The Professor picked up his plate and tentatively smelled the scraps of goo that were left. His lips thinned into a pale line. Placing the plate carefully down, Nick reached for the phone by his bed.

"Who're you calling?"

Nick looked up innocently. "Disease control."

Stephen nodded seriously. "Good idea. I've seen what you're getting for dinner."

* * *

Cutter looked around the ARC from his desk, and smiled inwardly. He still couldn't shake the feeling that this was not where he was supposed to be. He couldn't forget Claudia Brown, no matter how much the team wanted him to. Still, he reasoned, at least they hadn't tried to have him sectioned.

"Professor..."

He looked up at Connor, and gestured at the chair. "What can I do for you?"

"My dissertation."

"I read it."

"I realise you're really busy, what with the university, your own research, hunting down raptors and stuff, but-"

Cutter held up a hand to halt the flow. "I said, I've read it."

The young man looked a bit like a fish. He opened his mouth once or twice to say something, but for a change, nothing came out. Cutter unsuccessfully tried not to grin – he couldn't help but be amused whenever he managed to surprise Connor. The young man was sometimes too quick for his own good. The Professor sat back calmly, and listened to him talk about the dissertation, glad to return for a moment to his real job and forget the anomalies.


End file.
